this is a great project. you have heard from the mayor's office of housing that the reduction in the number of units is a real cost to the city and office of housing that could deploy those resources elsewhere. i think this is a project whose time has come and it deserves to go forward. supervisor mar: i am going to read some more names before the next speaker comes up. gail goldman, mike terio, and brett luellen. >> i am a native born and raised in laurel heights. everyone keeps referencing the bus yard. i grew up on the other side of that. i wish i was fortunate enough to attend drew school now that they

are getting this new gymnasium that is a very big deal. i am and several phone profit -- philanthropic boards throughout the city. community support is the key to making sure that any community organization is run successfully in the neighborhood. you have the option and opportunity of full community support with supervisor farrell's this in and compromise of the 41-unit building. we all support booker t. washington. we support affordable housing and transitional housing as well. those nine units might be a transitional or low-income units. those could be made up in another project. the conformity of the

neighborhood is key. another side note i wanted to make is that the gymnasium in its current location is -- [tone!] 1 basketball net will be flipped. it will be infringing on several backyard neighborhoods -- neighborhood backyards. it will affect the sunlight reaching some solar panels as well. we urge you to support supervisor farrell's compromise. bring the neighbors and community center to make it together to make a wonderful organization we know it can be. [tone!] >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. my name is hannah. i live on sutter directly across the street from booker t.

i am in favor of the 45-foot compromise. the thing i am concerned about that no one has raised is solar. there is a building with solar panels a couple of buildings down. my understanding is that they will probably pay higher utility bills as a result of this building if that happens. what about future installations. it marked the shadow? what about the shadows? what will a 50-foot building due

to the opportunities to have solar in this neighborhood? that's it. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. my name is gail goldman. i have spent a good part of my career trying to develop partnerships between housing developers and service providers to build housing for the transitional age youth population. it has been a rewarding career, but it is frankly difficult and it gets more difficult because resources for building affordable housing are even more difficult. three of housing projects i have worked on and seen developed --

for the youuth housing products i have worked on and see developed, some require at least six funding options and up to 10. they rarely come up the same time. to develop this sort of housing project often takes years. i know of one that took 10 years to develop in the city of san francisco. fortunately, this project 3 fortunate set of circumstances has not taken as long as 10 years. the financing is easier than most projects because property the booker t. owns the land. the other wonderful thing is that it is in a safe neighborhood with good public transportation. these young people cannot afford cars and do not have them.

the access to good public transportation is critical. moreover, it comes with a community center and the resources for the young people as well as good role models. [tone!] ok, thank you. >> thank you. your passion is well felt. next speaker, please. >> i was born and raised in san francisco. i am transitional aged youth. the matter being discussed has to do with height or the building fitting with in the context of the neighborhood, but what i would like to stress to you is that this is a moral decision on your hands. that is something my grandmother taught me on how to carry myself

in life. i think this is one of the moments where it is more clear than ever that this is a moral decision. the fact is that 24 units of transitional housing will still not be enough to meet the needs, but is a step in the right direction. when we talk about feet and units, we're really talking about lives of the youth who have the odds stacked against them. this is an opportunity for you to make the right moral decision of prioritizing the lives of former foster youths and folks who need affordable housing over building height, car spaces, or fitting into the context of a neighborhood. this is about lives. i urge you to make the right moral decision in supporting this project to move forward. thank you. >> [inaudible]

it looks like ava desra, cherilyn adams. >> i urge you to strongly support the 50-unit five-story building as approved by the planning commission. my support comes from various perspectives. i am a resident in mr. two. i am on the board of directors of the little school, and neighboring preschool just a block away from booker t. washington. i of four children that have attended the school and live in the neighborhood. i am also a civil rights attorney who has worked in public education for many years. in terms of the children who live and attend school and in iraq, we cannot go wrong with having a vibrant community center. this project will create that. we want a long-term community center that can survive for the

long term. we've heard a lot of testimony today in terms of the financial stability that the 50 units would create. from my perspective, we want something there that continues to be stable in the neighborhood and provides services to children in the neighborhood. second, booker t. washington's proposed project is a very unique model. it has wraparound services for the transitional aged youth and their children and also the school aged youth who have access to the after-school programs. this is unique. it is a unique public-private partnership. as a resident of district two, i support public-private partnerships. this will leverage the public dollars to go long term and work with non-profit community organizations that have a strong track record from party washington to first place for use.

i urge you to support the project. >> where is the middle school located questio? -- where is the little school located? you do not see those in competition? it helps to create a vibrant community, but is that competition for a little school? >> it has more applications than available slots. there are child care -- very cute child care options in the city. there are many children on waiting lists for child care in the city. >> there is little school. water the other child care options in the area? >> there is a new center across the street from little school. i do not know if it is a licensed child-care center. i do not know the name. in the neighborhood, there are

other centers. there is nothing directly right there. >> thank you. supervisor mar: 80. next speaker, please. >-- thank you. >> i am just going to come in for the most part and say with the reverend said. some of you are aware that the average as with us for apprentices is 29 years old. they come to us after they have stumbled around. some of them come to us after incarceration. they have lost 10 good years of possible a cccrual of pension benefits, building a nest egg, starting a family. supportive housing would give transition-age youth the real possibility of dealing secure enough to come to us and others like us to start a career

earlier and start their lives more successfully earlier. the more support of housing we have in san francisco, the better off we are, including a us in the trades. we have all heard about the outlook of the working class and especially the african-american working class in san francisco. we farm out our foster youth to other counties. if there's no place for them to come home to, that is where they stay. i say we bring them home to san francisco. nine units may seem small. it is huge in this regard. there is a crew of good-looking little kids across the hall that i hope to get a chance to see before the system. i think they are a powerful argument in favor of this project. we support the project. thank you. >> they did not fill out cards. i hate to keep them waiting

indefinitely. someone organizing them should consider bringing them in together. i hate to think of them just hanging around. the next speaker, please. >> i live and own property on sutter street immediately adjacent to the backyard of booker t. washington. i have lived here since 1988. i have never had an issue with the community center. i would like to reiterate in the six years, the neighborhood has never been opposed to the project, only to the facts. i am here to give my support to the pefarrell compromise. i feel like this is repeating some of the mistakes from the 1960's when we built overcrowded housing projects that we have since torn down and rebuilt as more family-friendly units. the current plan for a property

is trying to cram too many people into a small space. we want to help as many people as possible, but we have to consider the cost. the housing we build half to bea has to be livable. in an early iteration of the project, there were only 10 units for these kids at that time. now we're up to 25. we have more than double that. that is good. the 50 studio apartments are tiny. i urge everyone to really look at these plans. it kind of reminds you of a college dorm room. they do not show the kitchens or bathrooms. the apartments are tiny. currently, the lot is zoned for 28 units of housing. we're trying to build an enormous gymnasium, a community center, a radio center, and

adding 50 studio apartments. it seems like something has to give. as for the forego housing component, i do not see how 25 tiny studio apartments achieves the goal of keeping families in the city. [tone!] >> thank you. bring them up together. two can speak on behalf of them. >> i would like to make booker t. baker because more kids and people are coming to booker t. i would like to get them together so we do not have to

go to the garden house. we can just be a one place. but what was your name and men,? -- >> what was your name, young man? >> devonte. >> i think we should have a bigger area. we can have space and move around. we do not have space to do stuff. we can eat together and have fun together instead of going other places. that is all i have got to say. >> thank you. >> my name is still in rodgers -- dillon rogers. i would like to make booker t. baigger -- bigger because we do not have a lot of space. the middle schoolers have to go

someplace else. we cannot see them. sometimes the gymnasium is taken because there are practices and games. >> my name is eshon jones. i have been a part of booker t. washington since third grade. i am now in college. i grew up in district 5. i have not seen many educational facilities such as property washington. booker t. has supported me throughout my years with a safe, nurturing, and loving environment. i would like to see them expand so that they can give youth the same opportunities i had. >> thank you. >> i have been with booker t.

continues. the community is wonderful. the kids are wonderful. it is time for us to get a bigger building and space. we have a lot of new faces. it would be better for the kids. >> thank you, very much. we really appreciate it. [applause] thank you for your patience, like everybody else. let's resume the speakers' list. come on up. those people have been patiently waiting. thank you. >> good afternoon. i am a legislative affairs officer with the san francisco youth commission. in 2005, the commission noticed the lack of housing for youth and asked the mayor to have a task force. he did so. this task force then advised the mayor's office of housing to create 400 new units by 2015.

the members of this commission are probably aware that the goal of creating housing remains just as great now as six years ago. should this project and others all give build, it will still does the over 1/4 of the recommended units built by 2015. the task force ordained by the mayor made 16 recommendations. they consider those crucial to the success of the population. while we focus on just one recommendation today, it is remar-- important to remember hw endangered this population is. to insure the 500 new units get built, the san francisco youth commission is holding a hearing on monday, june 20. we will be hearing presentations from the mayor's

office of housing among others. i hope you will consider joining us. >> next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. as a youth commissioner and president of district two, i am very excited to see the possibilities of this project being moved forward. we did not know before coming here is that theryouth radio is planning on having space. that is really exciting. i think would be great for the youth in san francisco to have the opportunity. i always look forward to hearing the perspective of youth on npr. it would be great for the youth in san francisco. we definitely need the housing board. and people. this would be great for the youth of san francisco. -- we definitely need the housing for young people. this would be great for the use of san francisco.

>> i am going to read some more names. >> good afternoon. i am the executive director of community services. i am here to speak to the need of housing. even if we get all 400 units by 2015, that is just a tiny bit of what we need. market street sees 3400 youth a year. we estimate the need to be 5700 or homeless or at risk for it each year with a huge percentage of those coming out of the foster care system. this project needs to go through at full capacity. it is a lot if you are one of the nine who do not get housing because there are not the extra nine units. this is a moral decision. this is about addressing the needs of transitioning youth.

it is critical that the project go through. . to washington and youth radio make an excellent team who will provide great services for the young people who have the honor of living in the building. >> next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. i am the chief of programs and a member of the board of directors for booker t. i want to wholeheartedly support the project as it stands. i want to highlight the need for housing for transitional aged youth. we currently have a shelter for them. it has 40 beds and is overflowing every night. we have a bottleneck of available housing for those young people need transitional housing. the need is great.

the difference between 24 and a smaller amount makes a huge impact. i want to wholeheartedly support the project. thank you. >> next speaker, please. >> think you for taking time to listen to us. -- thank you for taking time to listen to us. my name is still at stone -- philip stone. i am on the board of directors for the booker t. washington center. i am a fourth generation san franciscan. i joined the center in 1948. i have been a member and instill in communications with most of the african-americans who grew up in the western addition. i have been a deputy public defender and a deputy city attorney in the city. i also work for the department

of housing and urban development. about five years ago, we put out feelers about what we should do and how to best utilize the property. at that time, we talked to some of the neighbors. i personally talked with three neighbors and steve williams at the same time. the proposal then was that the community center should knock the building down and make a park so that the neighbors could walk their dogs. i was obviously upset. but let me just say this -- we appreciate the proposals, but, as a compromise, it presupposes there was an agreement by interested parties.

booker t. has never agreed to that. i would ask this board -- i have nothing more to add to what the people have said, but i would ask the board to consider when it is time to vote, five stories and 50 units, i appreciate your time. supervisor mirkarimi: i have a question -- the proceeding is supervisor had provided support for the original projects, correct? >> that is correct. i went to her office and she was very helpful in showing us ways to shape the project so we could make it agreeable to all, other people in the neighborhood as well. we originally wanted something very large.

through the housing department, we set among ourselves and decided we would get something that made sense. from that point, we compromise further. supervisor mirkarimi: thank you. next speaker. i am going to read some more names. [reading names) get >> good afternoon. i have a brief message -- please support the compromise. but there has been much discussion about the original number of this. the original number could be

220, therefore there could be a big compromise on the part of the supporters because a would be cutting it in half. this is only a joke. that's all. supervisor mirkarimi: next speaker, please. >> 30 years with local 22 and i have not met a project yet that doesn't have controversy. but this has a nice ring to it -- affordable housing and a gymnasium. i remember many years ago, coaching where i grew up. there's something about when you say gymnasium that brings something to my heart. it's about a kids and that's a tough act to follow. i urge you to support the kids. supervisor mirkarimi: next speaker, please.

>> thank you. i'm the vice president of the laurel heights improvement association. i just submitted a level -- just submitted a letter for the committee invalid file. we support the proposed compromise by supervisor farrell. the original proposal lists eight exceptions to the zoning rules that would apply to this proposed project, including exception to height, bulk, usable open space, some light, and dwelling unit exposure, and density standard. the proposal to lump all of these exceptions in to a special use district constitutes spot zoning, granting preference to this parcel not granted to other parcels in the block. we understand the project would extend 30 feet into the required of barrier yard.

this would adversely impact neighbors by relieving mid blocked open space that benefits all properties on the block and conflicts with provisions of the residential design guidelines that impact light and privacy to adjacent structures be mitigated and the structure designed to be compatible with the neighboring structures. in addition, the modern facade of the building conflicts with the older architectural character of the area and fails to comply with the requirements of the residential design guidelines that the architectural features of the building be compatible to those commonly found in the neighborhood. in the appeal to the conditional use permit, we hope you will require a landscape in the rear of the building as has been installed at the rear of the institute on aging building where it is backed up on residential neighborhoods and you will require the sought improvements to make the architectural quality of the building compatible with the neighborhood.